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KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 18- Malaysian state fund 1 MDB said it would explore asset sales as well as the sale of development rights in prime property projects as it seeks to cut down on debt- a burden that has put pressure on the ringgit and the country's sovereign credit rating. The strategic review is new CEO Arul Kanda's attempt to make a break with years of controversy...

SINGAPORE/ MILAN, Feb 13- Over a dozen liquefied natural gas tankers are parked, many idle, in and around Singapore- one of the world's biggest trading hubs for the fuel- in a sign that the slowdown engulfing world gas markets may be worsening into a crisis. With Asian spot LNG prices down by almost two-thirds since February 2014 as slowing demand combines with rising...

*An agreement would come ahead of a reported Feb. 18 deadline. KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 12- Malaysian billionaire Ananda Krishnan is preparing to settle a $550 million loan owed by state fund 1 MDB, four sources familiar with the matter said- a last-minute reprieve for the fund whose debt woes are pressuring the ringgit and the country's sovereign credit rating.

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 10- Malaysia's highest court rejected on Tuesday an appeal by opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim against a sodomy conviction, sending the politician who poses the greatest threat to the long-ruling coalition back to prison for five years. Human Rights office, the United States and Australia said they were disappointed by the ruling and Amnesty...

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 6- Troubled state-owned investment fund 1 Malaysia Development Bhd has called off plans to sell up to 8.4 billion ringgit of Islamic bonds, two people familiar with the issue told Reuters on Saturday. Malaysian media had reported on Saturday that 1 MDB may pull out, thereby allowing Malaysia's largest power group Tenaga Nasional Bhd to take...

PARIS, Feb 3- A United Nations agency may press on Tuesday for rapid adoption of new aircraft tracking proposals, weeks ahead of the anniversary of the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, officials said. The International Civil Aviation Organization is expected to tell a safety conference in Montreal that new guidelines should come in force as...

MONTREAL, Feb 2- Malaysia, which suffered two commercial air disasters last year after one jet disappeared and another was shot down over Ukraine, said on Monday the United Nations must make reporting of risks to airlines over conflict zones mandatory. The International Civil Aviation Organization, the U.N.' s aviation agency, been under pressure to come up with...

MONTREAL, Feb 2- Malaysia, which had two air disasters last year after one jet disappeared and another was shot down over Ukraine, said on Monday that real-time aircraft tracking must become a priority for the industry. While real-time tracking of commercial planes would have a financial impact, it is too vital to ignore, Malaysia said in a paper to the United...

Andre De Silva, Head of Asia-Pacific Rates at HSBC, says the delay of a loan payment by state-owned investment fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad sets the stage for a downgrade in Malaysia's rating by Fitch.

By Yantoultra Ngui and Fransiska Nangoy KUALA LUMPUR/ JAKARTA, Jan 29- Indonesia narrowed the gap in car output with Thailand, Southeast Asia's automaking hub, to its smallest ever last year in percentage terms and is expected to overtake the Thai industry within a decade. Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest economy, has already surpassed Thailand as the...

SYDNEY/ SINGAPORE, Jan 27- Asian airlines are slashing fuel surcharges as oil prices hover at six-year lows, but passengers hoping for cheaper tickets will be disappointed as carriers are likely to bump up fares to maintain margins. Australia's Qantas Airways Ltd became the latest airline to eliminate the surcharge on Tuesday, but at the same time said it was...

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 26- A group calling itself "Official Cyber Caliphate" said it hacked on Monday the official website of national carrier Malaysia Airlines, but the airline said its data servers remained intact and passenger bookings were not affected. "Malaysia Airlines assures customers and clients that its website was not hacked and this temporary glitch...

TORONTO/ MONTREAL, Jan 22- The United States will throw its support behind a proposal by the U.N.' s aviation agency to share information about risks to commercial aircraft over conflict zones after the downing of a Malaysian jet in Ukraine last year, according to a senior U.S. official. The Malaysian passenger plane, flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was shot...

January@ KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 22- Malaysia's international reserves fell $4.8 billion in the first two weeks of January, its central bank said on Thursday, as the country's current account and ringgit current have come under pressure due to a steep fall in oil and gas export earnings. Reserves dropped frm $116.0 billion at the end of 2014 to $111.2 billion on January...